The Japan-America Society of Pennsylvania is proud to present the Kenny Endo Ensemble Taiko concert at the Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild on Thursday, March 24th at 7PM. He is returning to Pittsburgh as a part of his 40th Anniversary Celebration tour and will be performing as an emsemble with Abe Lagrimas Jr (vibes, ukulele, drumset) and Sumie Kaneko (koto, shamisen, vocals).

Kenny Endo is a world famous taiko drum artist who has the honor of being the first non-Japanese national to receive the title of Natori (stage name and master’s degree) of Hogaku hayashi – traditional drumming. He has performed for Michael Jackson, Princess Di, opened for The Who, and was recorded in motion-capture suit for James Cameron’s “Avatar.”

We’ll be participating in the Lunar New Year Kick-Off Celebration on Saturday, February 6 at the Jewish Community Center in Squirrel Hill, 5738 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh. The event runs 1-5 PM, and we’ll be performing at 4:30.

For more information about the event, as well as other Year of the Red Fire Monkey festivities taking place in Squirrel Hill, check out Uncover Squirrel Hill’s event page! We hope to see you there!

On Ensemble is at the forefront of the growing taiko (Japanese ensemble drumming) community in the United States. Led by childhood friends Shoji Kameda and Masato Baba, On Ensemble has made a name for itself by combining the powerful rhythms and singing of traditional taiko with vibrant jazzy melodies.

The group has achieved recognition worldwide, from being the first American group to have been invited to perform at the prestigious Nihon no Taiko concert series in Japan in 2013, to their three critically acclaimed albums. Their fearless musical explorations have taken the ancient instruments of taiko into new realms and have established a distinctly modern expression for the art form.

The concert will be from 7:00-9:00PM, with doors opening at 6:30PM. Tickets are $20 for JASP members, $25 for non-members, and $10 for children and students with valid I.D. Tickets are available online at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2475571, and will be sold at the door.

This Friday, November 13, 2015, we’ll be giving a lecture/demonstration at Carnegie Mellon University for the CMU Japanese Student Association! The event will be at 6 PM in McConomy Auditorium in the CMU University Center.

We’ve reached our participation limit for Saturday’s Beginners Workshop, so we’re closing down registration. Thanks to everyone who registered – we’ll be e-mailing you soon with more information.

If you or someone you know wasn’t able to register in time, but are interested in learning more about playing taiko, please contact us! We’ll be having beginners sessions starting in October. They’ll be more focused than this beginners session, which will be a broad introduction, but are definitely an alternative if you’re not able to make it!

We’re happy to announce the date of our next Beginners Workshop! The FREE workshop will be held on Saturday, September 19, beginning at 3 PM, at the Winchester Thurston Lower School in Shadyside (555 Morewood Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15213).

You can find more about the workshop at the Beginners Workshop page – you’ll soon be able to register there as well! (we’re still working out a few final details re. registration – more info soon!).